WASHINGTON — Democratic Sen. John Fetterman of Pennsylvania says he plans to meet with President-elect Donald Trump.
“President Trump invited me to meet, and I accepted. I’m the Senator for all Pennsylvanians — not just Democrats in Pennsylvania,” Fetterman said in a statement. “I’ve been clear that no one is my gatekeeper. I will meet with and have a conversation with anyone if it helps me deliver for Pennsylvania and the nation.”
CBS News first reported the development.
The timing and location of their meeting are unclear, including whether it would take place before Trump’s inauguration on Jan. 20.
Fetterman, who has served in the Senate since 2023, has positioned himself as a moderate on Capitol Hill and has voiced a willingness to vote for some of Trump’s Cabinet nominees, including Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., for secretary of state.
“I don’t have a specific message. I don’t know what his is. It’s just about a conversation,” Fetterman told NBC News on Thursday afternoon when he was asked what he plans to tell Trump.
He identified several issues on which he can work with Trump.
“Laken [Riley Act]. The border. Israel. Chinese is a significant issue,” Fetterman said. “I think there’s going to be more and more, and I think to find more that we can work together on. And obviously we’re going to disagree on some issues, but that’s how things work.”
In a Fox News interview Tuesday, Fetterman signaled that he also plans to support nominees like Elise Stefanik for ambassador to the United Nations and former Rep. Sean Duffy, R-Wis., for secretary of transportation.
“Some of these nominees I’m going to vote for,” he said. “I’m open to hear from everyone, and I don’t know why that’s controversial, and I’d like to remind everyone on the Democratic side that’s how democracy works.”
Fetterman said he wants to find bipartisan ways to work with the new administration.
He said in an interview on ABC’s “This Week” last month that Trump is “a singular political talent.”
“It’s undeniable, Trump. You know, he had the energy and almost a sense of fearlessness,” he said. “After you survive an assassination, you literally were shot in your head, and had the presence of mind to respond, you know, fight, fight, fight. I mean, that’s a political talent. It’s undeniable.”
